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Topic: Does anybody recognize this language? (Read 6604 times)

The language in question is heard here (streaming .mp3). This is the Eastern Orthodox Paschal troparion in several languages, and I am having trouble identifying the third one that is sung. The order of languages sung is:

At first I thought the language might be Romanian, but listening to it while looking at the text of that language shows that it's definitely not that. Similar results were obtained by examining the text in Albanian and Armenian, which were my other two guesses. It's certainly not Finnish or Japanese, and neither is it in any of the Slavic languages, as they all are almost the same and I would have recognized it. Therefore, this is driving me insane.

Anybody recognize the language?

Postscript: If you feel so inclined, I recommend checking out the other music on that site by this group; they perform chants in Slavonic according to the Byzantine, Znamenny, Georgian, and Strochnoj styles (i.e. anything pre-Nikonian, essentially) and are quite good. And the record label is Not Evil.

The site is www.magnatune.com, and the group is Ensemble Sreteniye. All of their music is available to listen to via streaming media.

I'm fairly sure it's not Albanian, as I sat down with that text and saw very quickly that it didn't match up with what they were singing. Unless they were singing in a different dialect... but it doesn't sound Albanian. I might ask an Albanian co-worker of mine tomorrow if it is or not.

Are you sure? The only rendition I've ever heard of the Paschal greeting in Turkish is "Christos dirildi", which isn't the first two words that are sung here. (Well, the first word is the same, but the second is definitely different.)

Update: Ok, you may be right. I'm hearing something that sounds like "dirildi" in the first line, so they may be using a different word order.

However if you visit the website - http://magnatune.com/artists/ensemble_sreteniye - and click on the CD cover, the one with the monk and the bell, you will get a PDF of the CD front and back covers. It lists selection 9 as Christ is Risen and on the bottom says that selection 9 is in Slavonic, Latin Turkish, Greek and Georgian.

Also, check out the Kolyadka "Ne plach Rakhile" Beautiful! They list it as Ukrainian....I know a slightly different melody as Carpatho Russian, although it might be the same and the arrangement is different.

It is in commemoration of the slaying of the Holy Innocents.

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No Turk would say, "Hristos Voskrese" ....this sounds Old Slavonic or Russian.

« Last Edit: July 18, 2005, 07:44:08 PM by macedonia74 »

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"The one who is free can go wherever he wishes to, in the light of the manifested grace. The captured one will be led by the captor, and will at the same time be convinced that he is his own guide" -- Met. Nahum of Strumica

This is good information, however, not all of these have been translated entirely correct. There are some minor mistakes..

« Last Edit: July 18, 2005, 07:49:49 PM by macedonia74 »

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"The one who is free can go wherever he wishes to, in the light of the manifested grace. The captured one will be led by the captor, and will at the same time be convinced that he is his own guide" -- Met. Nahum of Strumica

Yes, two of the versions on that track are indeed in Slavonic. However...

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No Turk would say, "Hristos Voskrese" ....this sounds Old Slavonic or Russian.

Dude, the people singing it aren't Turks, they're Ukrainians, and the album itself says that it's in Turkish, besides which, you can clearly hear them not say "Christos voskrese" and instead say "Christos <something> diril-di".

Dude, the people singing it aren't Turks, they're Ukrainians, and the album itself says that it's in Turkish, besides which, you can clearly hear them not say "Christos voskrese" and instead say "Christos <something> diril-di".

I'll have hear again tomorrow, however, I could of sworn I heard "voskrese"...

-best

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"The one who is free can go wherever he wishes to, in the light of the manifested grace. The captured one will be led by the captor, and will at the same time be convinced that he is his own guide" -- Met. Nahum of Strumica

Great music. Can't say what it is but I can definintely say what it isn't. It is not Romanian. Had it been it would have started 'Hristos a-nviat' and I would have understood it, which it didn't and I didn't respectively. Turkish sounds like a good possibility as it seems similar sounding to the Turkish I once heard - but that was a very long time ago, so I could be very wrong.

James

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